


working on from then til now

by RaineyDay



Series: Febuwhump 2021 [17]
Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Angus McDonald Backstory, Angus McDonald Needs a Hug, Betrayal, Gen, Rated T for swearing and mentioned deaths, Sad Angus McDonald
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-14 18:48:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29546781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RaineyDay/pseuds/RaineyDay
Summary: For the Febuwhump prompts of: "identity reveal" (chapter 1), "sleep deprivation" (chapter 2), "betrayal" (chapter 3), "i can't lose you too"  (chapter 4), and a fun surprise fifth one. (chapter 5)Angus let people think that he'd become a detective because of the Caleb Cleveland novels, which wasn't a lie, exactly. Just not the whole truth. The whole truth was a lot more complicated than that.Or, the one where Angus' parents attended the 'Sizzle it Up with Taako!' show in Glamour Springs.
Relationships: Angus McDonald & Taako
Series: Febuwhump 2021 [17]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2138502
Comments: 9
Kudos: 41
Collections: febuwhump 2021





	1. identity reveal

**Author's Note:**

> thanks to my wonderful friend Seren from the discord for this horrible, painful idea.
> 
> This one's gonna be a two/three shot, but the new chapters will be updated for different prompts later in the month, so you'll have the whole thing by the end of February.

Angus didn't like to talk about _why_ he had gone into detective work. It was private and personal, and it always hurt to think about.

Besides which, it felt cliche and overdramatic when he said it out loud. "I became a detective to solve my parents' murder" was the kind of thing that you expected to hear from a character in a book or play, not a real person, and especially not a kid.

So he let people believe that it was as simple as the fact that he loved the Caleb Cleveland novels that motivated the career decision. He did love the books, after all. It wasn't out of the realm of belief. He'd even started thinking about becoming a detective before his parents died because of those books, so it wasn't even totally a lie. They just hadn't been the final straw to motivate him to start down that path.

When he'd lost his parents, he'd been devastated, of course, a child with little understanding of grief suddenly losing the most important people in his life. His grandfather had taken him in, and he was kind, but old and grieving himself, which only made the transition more difficult.

Everyone had told Angus that they were working to find the killer, that they would be brought to justice. That if nothing else, his parents would get that dignity, and that he would get that closure and resolution.

Angus hadn't really understood that, if he was being honest. He didn't want the killer punished- he wanted his parents back.

But he was only a little boy and he didn't understand much of the world, so if the grown-ups said that it would be a little better after that, then he'd believe them.

And catching the villain would ensure that they couldn't hurt anyone else, which was definitely good.

As the weeks passed, however, people stopped telling Angus those things. They stopped talking about the possibility of capturing the murderer at all.

Angus had taken to listening in to his grandfather's conversations by sitting on the steps outside of his office, where it was dark and no one noticed the little boy sitting quietly in the shadows.

That was how he learned that the killer had proven surprisingly elusive. That the expected 'easy solve' had drawn itself out far longer than anyone liked- except the killer, presumably, which made Angus so angry. How dare they be happy when they had broken his family and gods knew how many others?

That was how he learned that they were officially calling off the search and declaring the case cold.

And the hope that Angus had been told to cling to was turned to dust in his arms, and nobody had any other solutions for him.

So Angus decided that if the militia wouldn't solve the case, then he would. He wrote down everything he knew about the mystery, just like Caleb Cleveland always did, so that he wouldn't forget any of the details. Cold cases took a long time to solve, even for very good detectives, and Angus was just starting his work, so he knew that it would be easy to forget those details before he could use them.

He started to study how Caleb solved his mysteries, as well as other fictional detectives, taking notes on their strategies and advice, the supplies they would bring along on their adventures and how they put the clues together to make a conclusion. He borrowed books on law and deductive reasoning from his grandfather's library, poring over them until late in the night, learning everything he could about solving mysteries, even when it was hard.

And he began to put his learning into practice when he went into town, looking and listening for anything suspicious, and following the trail until he understood what had happened.

He started small, knowing that no one would trust him with big cases until he proved himself, and that he would have trouble solving the mystery he so wanted to solve without a lot of practice. He couldn't afford to mess this up. It was too important.

He found missing pets and lost items, unearthed silly gossip and school scandals, working his way up to the point where he finally solved a serious mystery- a break-in and robbery. He found the culprit and gave his evidence to the militia, meticulous notes and all the trains of thought that he had followed to his conclusion, the undeniable proof that he had gathered and that they verified when they asked the suspect a few simple questions that she'd never expected would reveal so much information- that it wouldn't have if not for Angus' work.

The militia detectives had been surprised, and impressed, but mostly in the way that people are impressed when an animal performs a trick. Angus hadn't really expected much more, even if he had hoped for it.

He would just have to keep working at it.

-

Angus enjoyed his work at the Bureau, even if it didn't leave him with a lot of opportunities to track down information on his personal case. There was only so much information available on the moon, and the adults didn't like to send him planetside to gather information, even though he'd done plenty of that all on his own before they'd hired him here, and by all accounts he was safer now than he was then, since he actually had people to call on to help him if he needed it.

He'd already had to put off solving his parents' murder for years, so it wouldn't hurt anything to put it off a little longer, especially when he was doing so much good stuff here. These relics were clearly bad news, and he was helping save people. Helping to save the world! If that meant that he couldn't bring justice to his parents for a few more months, then it wasn't a difficult decision at all.

He did sometimes wish that he had more stuff to do though. The moon base was really cool, but it was very isolated too, and that could get very boring sometimes.

Boredom played a not insignificant role in his eventually getting up the courage to ask Taako to teach him magic. It didn't really seem like something the wizard would be that interested in, but he put up with Angus' presence often enough that Angus wasn't afraid of him or anything, and the worst that could happen would be Taako saying no. That would make Angus sad, but it wasn't that bad.

And if he was bored, then probably Taako got bored sometimes too, since his work for the Bureau was less consistent and he really only had training most of the time, if that.

So he figured that it wouldn't hurt to ask.

And, much to his surprise, Taako agreed. Angus had been really excited about that, and then Taako had teased him, threatening to not teach him if he kept acting like that, but Angus was pretty sure he was kidding. He toned it down a bit anyway.

Taako seemed to be almost enjoying himself at the lesson, which made Angus happy. He didn't want to force Taako to do something he wasn't comfortable with- not that there were many people who could even manage that anyway- and he wanted Taako to like him. He wanted all the Reclaimers to like him really, but Taako had proved the most- interesting so far, and the one that Angus was most interested in learning more about.

And then he was learning more about Taako- really serious backstory trauma stuff- and Angus wanted to feel honored that Taako had opened up to him at all, but he couldn't stop the sick feeling of dread that made him wish that Taako had never said anything at all.

He didn't let it show. He needed to think before he reacted, and that required him to stay calm and relatively unaffected by Taako's confession. He could be a little affected. It was a very- impactful thing to learn about anybody. Who wouldn't be affected?

Angus really hoped that Taako put any oddities in his reaction to that. He didn't want to push Taako away and make him-

Angus didn't know what he wanted and didn't want anymore.

Because Taako had killed his parents.


	2. 'sleep deprivation'

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nobody has an easy time sleeping after that revelation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Febuwhump day 19: Sleep deprivation

Angus didn't sleep much the night after he'd learned what Taako had done. He tossed and turned, replaying the evidence over and over again in his mind.

 _Technically_ , Taako didn't mention where exactly all this had gone down. So Angus couldn't actually confirm it, really.

But the few pieces of specific information that he had been able to pry out of Taako had been damning enough.

And what were the odds that there had been _two_ instances of traveling chefs poisoning their audience in the same year?

Angus had to face the facts, little as he wanted to. It had been Taako. There was no other explanation.

Taako had killed his parents- but it had been an accident. He hadn't been trying to hurt anybody. The image of the violent criminal who wanted to hurt others that had lingered in Angus' mind for so long when he thought of his parents' killer was no more. It had never been true in the first place.

There was no malicious intent behind the death of his parents. It was just an accident.

A part of him felt better to know that. He liked Taako, and he didn't want to have to turn him in for murder. The fact that it had been an accident, that Taako so clearly regretted it, that he'd worked to make sure that nothing like that ever happened again, meant that Angus could try to- he wanted to forgive him. He really did.

But there was another part of him that was screaming at the injustice of it all. There was no villainy behind his parents' deaths. Just a simple mistake. There was no true justice to be had. He could ensure that his parents' killer be caught, but it wouldn't make him happy, because he cared about Taako, and he didn't feel that Taako deserved that.

His parents had died and there had been no purpose to it. No sense. It hadn't done anything for anyone. It was just unfair.

Angus was aware that life wasn't always fair, but never had he felt such rage about that fact as he did now. He found himself thrown back into the mindset he'd had before, whenever anyone talked of justice. He didn't want his parents' killer to be punished, especially not now that he knew the man in question. Knew him to be likeable, and decent, and someone who was currently risking his life to try and save this plane, no matter how aloof and selfish a front he put on.

Angus didn't want Taako to be punished. He could tell that Taako had already spent a lot of time punishing himself.

He just wanted his parents _back_.

-

When Angus finally got some sleep, it was restless and frightened. He dreamed of his parents' killer- the anonymous figure that he'd always envisioned before, twisted together with Taako now in a way that felt deeply wrong. The grin on dream-Taako's face was twisted and inaccurate, and the wizard seemed to tower over him in a way he never did in reality.

And the dream changed, as Angus proved Taako to be guilty- a moment that had always felt triumphant when he dreamed or imagined it before, that now felt rotten and sickening.

He saw Taako curled up, vulnerable, dying, all because he made a mistake. A really bad mistake, yes, but a mistake regardless.

He saw the disgust and despair of the other Bureau members when they looked at both of them. How could Taako do something like that? How could Angus endanger their mission by turning him in?

He saw the world consumed in darkness, the relics left to roam free, destroying everything in their path until there was nothing left.

He woke feeling no more rested than he had been when he laid down.

-

Taako had known that this would happen. He should never had told Ango about the last show. The kid _hated_ him now. He'd acted like it was okay when they'd spoken, had seemed to be really interested in the weirdness related to his Umbra Staff, and Taako had hoped that would be that. The kid would let it go, stop asking questions and move on to something else.

He should have known better though, especially considering how much info the kid had pried for before the Staff had it's weird freakout and burned the wall.

Angus had insisted on drawing the word, saying that it was important to keep a record of all pertinent case details- the nerd- before Taako had figured that it might be a good idea to magic the wall back to its normal state. Didn't want the Director on his ass for vandalizing or whatever, especially because he didn't think 'my staff has a mind of its own' was a very believable or reassuring excuse.

But it wasn't gonna matter anyway. Because Angus hated him now, and he was going to tell the Director everything, and she'd kick him out because why would they keep a murderer on staff when they had two other perfectly capable Reclaimers in the form of Magnus and Merle?

And Taako really hated that thought. Not just because he didn't want to have to go on the run from the law again when the Director or Angus let the authorities know about him, either.

He liked it here. He liked Magnus and Merle, working on a team with them, being friends with them. They were comfortable in a way that he couldn't explain but really appreciated. And he liked the Director too, especially when she let herself joke around with them as she did on rare occasion. He liked Davenport, even though the guy couldn't communicate much. He liked Killian and Carey, and Avi and Johann. He had fun messing with Leon for his and his friends' amusement.

He even found himself really liking the whole 'saving people' thing, which he hadn't expected. He was selfish, always had been, always had to be. He hadn't thought that saving other people would feel as fulfilling as this. But there was something really satisfying about it, and even if he didn't think he'd make heroing a full time career after he'd finished up this stuff and got himself enough good to have a real good setup, he kind of understood now why some people did.

And now he was going to lose all of that.

Angus had been alternating between completely avoiding him and spending time with him but being super skittish and distant the entire time. Probably was hoping to get more information out of him before turning him in.

Angus had asked Taako where exactly all this had gone down, after the other questions. Taako's self-preservation instincts had finally kicked in to do their job then, and he'd refused to say, but he'd answered a bunch of other important questions first, like when it had happened, how many people had died, and several other very pertinent details that would make it very easy for anybody to connect it to Glamour Springs, let alone someone as smart as Angus.

Really, Taako thought that he probably deserved this. He had killed all those people. He hadn't meant to hurt anybody- oh fucking gods, he'd _never_ meant to hurt anybody- but he had. He wasn't just going to hand himself over or anything, but yeah, he probably deserved to lose out on having this sweet setup.

Still, didn't mean he had to like it. Didn't mean that he wasn't absolutely kicking himself for admitting so much of that stuff to Angus.

With everything else he stood to lose, he found it surprising that the one he kept coming back to was the loss of Angus' respect and affection. He hadn't even realized that he particularly valued that in the first place. Little shit could be fun sometimes, but Taako had really only agreed to teach him out of boredom and guilt for the whole silverware incident, not because he really craved spending time with him.

But he just couldn't seem to shake the image of Angus' horrified expression out of his mind. Kid had looked absolutely heartbroken.

Well. Everybody had to learn that even the people you look up to most will let you down eventually. It was a good lesson, would save the boy a lot of pain in the future.

Taako still hated that he'd been the reason that he'd learned it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> after doing a little more story planning, this is now four chapters long. the third chapter will be up tomorrow, for prompt "betrayal" :) and the fourth chapter will be up on Sunday, for one of the bonus prompts.


	3. 'betrayal'

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: betryal

As more and more days passed with no sign that Angus had said anything to the Director about what Taako had told him, he started to relax a little, wondering if the kid maybe had chosen not to say anything at all.

Taako didn't understand that, but he wasn't going to question it when that might prompt Angus to reconsider. Maybe the kid had decided not to break up the Reclaimer team. Sure, Magnus and Merle could get the relics too, but the three of them worked well together and all, so it might be too much of a pain to replace him now.

Maybe the kid even decided to spare him because he liked Taako? He'd asked for more magic lessons after the first, and Taako had agreed, because he was still bored, and that first magic lesson had proven surprisingly fun, and Angus had talent. He was hard on himself, but Taako knew how to pick up on genuine talent when he saw it.

He really hoped it was one of those first explanations, and not the one that sometimes snuck into his mind late at night, when the worst thoughts always arrived.

He really hoped that Angus wasn't _scared_ of him. He might be. Had a right to be. Taako had killed a lot of people, and he was a powerful fucking wizard, and he'd even threatened him- jokingly- about what he'd do if Angus ever surpassed him in wizardly talents.

Not to mention the fact that his Umbra Staff had randomly blasted Ango's macarons with fire for no apparent reason. Angus seemed to believe Taako when he said that the Staff had been acting on its own- but what if he didn't?

It was an irrational fear. Angus wouldn't have asked for more magic lessons if he was afraid of him. He'd just avoid him, right?

But irrationality never stopped anxious thoughts from plaguing anybody.

-

Angus didn't know what to do. He liked Taako. He enjoyed spending time with him, and he was really happy that Taako had agreed to keep teaching him magic.

He wanted it to be as simple as that.

But he couldn't forget who Taako was. He couldn't stop thinking that it was a betrayal to his parents to like their killer so much.

He couldn't stop thinking of Taako fondly.

The more time he spent with Taako, the weirder he felt about all of it. The more he found himself loving Taako. The more he found himself hating himself for the betrayal.

He needed to confront Taako, but instead he was befriending him. What was he _thinking_?

As he let his thoughts stew, he was embarrassed to realize that the Director was speaking to him. Probably had been for a bit, judging by the tone of her voice when she said his name.

"Angus?"

"I- I'm so sorry, ma'am, I got distracted. Could you repeat that?" Angus said, blushing.

"I was asking if you're okay, Angus," the Director said, brows furrowed together in concern as she watched him.

"Yes, ma'am, I'm fine!" Angus said.

"Really?" The Director did not seem to believe that at all.

"Well- no- I mean- I'm having a personal issue. But it won't interfere with my work, I promise!" Angus assured.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Is there anything I can do to help?" the Director said, and she hesitated before sitting down next to Angus on the little bench he'd been on for- he wasn't sure how long.

"Not really," Angus sighed. He wished that she could. It would be so nice if he could tell her everything and have her present a neat solution, but it couldn't happen.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

Angus did. But if he told her, then it would only make things _more_ complicated. If he told her, then she'd have to decide if Taako's abilities outweighed the fact that he'd been responsible for such a tragedy as the Glamour Springs disaster. She was a really good person, and Angus didn't think that such a decision would weigh easy on her mind. He didn't want to make things harder for her.

Maybe he'd tell her, if he thought she could actually fix everything, but he didn't. He was having a conflict of emotions and morals, and he had to figure it out for himself. No one else could do it for him.

Besides which, it felt like a betrayal to Taako to share something like that, that Taako had shared with him in confidence. He didn't want to get Taako in trouble when he still hadn't even figured out how he felt about all of this.

"I don't think- that I can. It's not my story to tell," Angus said, finally.

"I understand," the Director said. "But if you ever need to talk, please know that I will listen."

She stood then, but didn't walk away quite yet.

"But I urge you to talk to someone about it. Perhaps the individual whose story it _is_. It's important to communicate about your struggles. Sometimes you can't, I know," she said, and her voice took on a very sad, longing tone, and Angus wondered again what her life had been like before this. "But- through all the difficulties I've had, I've found that it's better when you have people at your side. There will always be problems that you cannot be open about, but that makes it all the more important to be open when you can."

There was a sincerity and a weight to her voice that made Angus want to listen to her advice.

"Thank you ma'am. I'll- see what I can do," Angus offered, giving a bright smile to thank her for her words. She so clearly meant them, and it meant a lot to Angus that she wanted to help.

"Good. I hope that your issue eases up soon. You deserve- I only want what's best for everyone," she smiled back at him, and Angus found himself feeling a little lighter.

She was right, much as he hated the thought of airing out everything.

He would never get past this if he didn't communicate about it.

He had to speak with Taako.

-

When Angus had asked to speak in private, Taako had immediately gone tense. This could only be about one thing.

He'd hoped that Angus wouldn't feel the need to talk about the situation ever again. It wasn't exactly something that Taako liked to relive.

But what was he supposed to do? The kid deserved to be heard out. He deserved to deal with the kid's reaction. And anyway, Angus had a sword hanging over Taako's head in the form of knowing Taako's biggest secret.

Taako didn't think that Angus _wanted_ to blackmail him, but he also knew that Angus could and would under the right circumstances.

So he agreed, and found himself in Angus' dorm room, waiting for judgement.

Angus' room was kind of adorable, Taako hated to admit. It was small, and his bed had a bunk that no one used- the moon base had a limited amount of real estate, and clearly the Director had struggled with finding a space that was appropriate for a kid to live in. Angus needed his own room since he was, like, a child and couldn't bunk with an adult stranger, but the single bed rooms were mostly suites, with kitchens and sometimes other bedrooms, which Angus didn't need.

Kid had limited cooking experience, as evidenced by the sugar-less macarons, and he was too short for adult-human sized appliances and too tall for a gnome or dwarf sized kitchen to be very comfortable either.

It looked like she'd settled on taking a bunkbed out of one of the initiate-type dorm rooms, leaving Angus with a little more space and privacy. There was a desk against one wall, and Taako wasn't surprised to see that it was very neat, but the little stuffed toys lining the back of it were a cute surprise. They were clearly decorative, and Taako was sure that the kid would rather be caught dead than playing with them, but it was adorable anyway.

He had a bookshelf, half lined with colorful kids' chapter books, mostly Caleb Cleveland novels, and half with thick tomes in dark colors.

Taako tried to keep the grin on his face from becoming too soppy. It was cute yeah, but he was a stone-cold motherfucker, and he wouldn't be caught turning into mush over a dumb kid.

"So, what's up bubeleh?" Taako asked, dropping into the chair at the desk and leaning it back on two legs, trying to keep it casual.

"I need to talk to you about what happened at Glamour Springs," Angus said, his face drawn and serious.

Taako stopped rocking the chair, but didn't look over at Angus. So that confirmed that Angus knew everything. Must have done his research if he now knew where it had gone down.

"Shoot," Taako said.

"You killed forty people at Glamour Springs because you made a mistake with magic you weren't familiar with," Angus said.

Taako winced at the words like they were a physical blow, but they were certainly true.

Angus paused, but Taako didn't know what to say. What was there to say? He couldn't justify it any more than he already had.

"Two of them were Sam and Dianne McDonald," Angus said, voice wavering and thick. "My parents."

Taako felt his blood go cold and his mind go dark. _No. Fuck._ Gods, what had he done?

It had been a long time since Taako let himself think of his victims. He tried to avoid it most of the time. But here was a reminder, standing right in front of him, tears in his eyes. He found his mind casting back to that horrible moment all over again, trying to visualize them. Trying to pick them out from the crowd.

But he'd spent so long trying to forget that day, the crowd had just turned into a blur of horrified faces and dying people.

He'd always felt so bad about them that he'd rarely had much guilt to spare for the other victims- the families of everyone he'd killed. The parents and sibling and friends- the children that he had orphaned.

Whatever happened now, he wouldn't protest. His past had finally caught up to him, and he had no right to avoid it.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" Angus said, and his voice cracked, and Taako felt a stabbing pain in his chest over it.

"What can I say?" Taako asked, and it was a genuine question. He wanted to say something that would help, but no words would undo what he'd done. "I'm _sorry_ , Angus. I'm so fucking sorry."

Angus just sobbed at that. Taako always hated it when people cried, but he still found himself wanting to comfort the kid. He wanted to hug him and soothe him, which was a big difference from his usual tactic of running from emotions as fast as possible. But would his comfort even be welcome?

"I _know_ you're sorry," Angus finally mumbled.

He brought up his hands to scrub tears from his eyes, pushing his glasses roughly out of the way in the process. He looked so little. He'd been even littler when he'd lost his parents.

Taako had expected anger if he ever met someone who loved any of his victims. Who wouldn't be angry at something like that?

But this was worse. It was so much worse than anger ever could have been. It broke his heart. He hated seeing Angus like this. He just wanted to make it better.

"Babe, come here," Taako said, reaching for Angus. It was instinctive, an offer without any conscious thought behind it. He wasn't good at comfort, but it seemed that his subconscious at least had some idea of how to do it.

He didn't expect Angus to listen. He hadn't expected the kid to immediately dart into his arms and start to cry into his shirt. He let it happen anyway. This was the least he could do after what he'd taken from the kid.

He held Angus close as the kid cried, offering soft comforting noises intermittently, feeling more helpless than he could remember ever feeling before.

Angus managed to cry himself into a state of exhaustion, and fell asleep right there in Taako's lap. Taako had never felt so guilty as he did then, realizing that the kid trusted him anyway. Realizing that he valued the kid's trust. Realizing that he never would have met this kid if he hadn't messed up so bad at Glamour Springs.

How dare he gain any happiness from that? It was selfish to be happy to have Angus in his life when it came at the cost of Angus losing his parents, and his parents and so many others losing their lives. He had no right to love Angus, let alone to be loved back.

Taako had long ago accepted that he was a selfish person, but this went so far beyond that. He couldn't seem to stop it though. And what was he supposed to do? Leave the kid to grieve alone, avoid facing responsibility for what he'd done? Surely that was worse.

Taako picked Angus up, gently, settling him onto the bed. He took off the kid's shoes and his glasses, setting them by the side of the bed for when Angus woke.

He didn't notice his own tears until one fell onto Angus' face as he was pulling the blanket over him, and then, having noticed, it was all he could do to keep his crying silent so as to not wake Angus.

He couldn't walk back to his room like this. He probably shouldn't leave Angus alone either.

Taako sat down on the wall farthest from Angus' bed, and clapped a hand over his mouth to hold back the urge to sob.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sad bois :( who's gonna tell 'em??? and will that help??


	4. 'i can't lose you too'

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Febuwhump alternate prompt: 'I can't lose you too'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah, you know how sometimes you think you can get a story wrapped up in one chapter, and then four chapter later you're saying, no wait, one more chapter, at most!!
> 
> we're at that point with this one.

Taako couldn't explain how, but they got past it. Angus asked for more magic lessons, he hung around with Tres Horny Boys, and he put up with all of their dumb jokes until Taako stopped wanting to flinch every time they spoke.

Taako found himself growing extremely protective of the kid, much to his own dismay. He didn't want to care about this stupid kid. But he kind of already did. He'd cared about him before he'd learned what he'd done, and he'd felt- responsible for him afterward.

He loved this dumb brat, and it was terrifying, and it was amazing.

And then everything changed again.

The deaths at Glamour Springs- they hadn't been his fault at all. Not directly anyway. Not in the way he'd always thought they had been.

It had been Sazed- the _fucker_ \- jealous and bitter and taking it out on Taako and his audience.

Taako hadn't done anything wrong. Well, except for everything he did that convinced Sazed to hate him in the first place- but, but that wasn't the same. It wasn't his cooking. It wasn't his magic. It wasn't _him_.

It was just a dick who went way too far.

Taako wanted to be happy about that, but he couldn't quite bring himself to be. It didn't change anything that had happened, really. The only person that this knowledge benefited was himself, and, like, yeah, it was pretty great to know that he hadn't messed up in that particular way- but was it really all that much better? Still his fault. Still his food. Still his reputation ruined with no way to prove that he hadn't done it.

But he could tell Angus about it. And maybe the kid wouldn't feel so bad about him anymore.

Angus had been really torn up about befriending his parents' supposed killer, Taako knew. Kid was all about justice and fairness, so it was hardly a surprise. He had spent so long wanting to punish the killer, and then suddenly he was trusting him instead. Of course the kid was gonna feel weird about it.

Oh. Wait.

On the other hand, Angus wanted justice. He'd pushed that aside when he'd thought it was Taako, thought it was an accident.

How would he react to knowing that it had been murder after all? What would the kid do about it?

The thought of Angus running headlong after a murderer, especially while emotional and overwrought, sent a spike of fear through Taako's blood. Sazed was a slimy motherfucker that had always known how to act in his own self-interest- how to eliminate loose ends. Taako had appreciated it before, when he hadn't realized that the guy was willing to commit stone cold, premeditated murder. When those talents had been used to his advantage in running the show, and he'd thought Sazed wouldn't do anything worse than skirting some of the less convenient laws.

Sazed had poisoned the food Taako made for a crowd. He had wanted Taako to die in front of an audience, to die painfully and ruin his reputation in the process. Sazed had either not cared about or maybe even hoped for the deaths of the audience members as well. Sazed must have planned it out at least a few days in advance, if not longer, and he had spent that time calmly working with Taako while imagining his death.

Sazed had been the one to suggest running first. Taako knew that he probably would have come to the idea soon enough, but he'd been too frozen in shock in the moment to start moving. The fucker had seen his plan go awry and decided to make Taako look as guilty as possible before ditching him and stealing his shit.

He would have no qualms about killing a kid.

If Angus went after him, he'd be putting himself in danger.

And Angus would go after him. Taako knew him well enough by now to know that. You didn't become a renowned detective by the age of ten by holding back. The kid had no concept of his own limits and a years-long hope for justice.

Taako couldn't let that happen, but he didn't know how he was supposed to protect the kid either. He and the guys could go with him, Taako supposed, but that would still bring Angus into danger by the fact that he would be present with a murderer.

And Taako didn't know enough about Sazed or the situation the guy was currently in to be certain of the threat level. He was sure that he, Merle, and Magnus could take the guy if he was by himself, but what if he had allies? Who even knew where the guy was nowadays?

Taako was going to tell Angus. Of course he would tell Angus, the kid had a right to know.

But he needed to make a plan first. He needed to figure out how to keep Angus safe and still get the justice he so wanted.

-

Taako tried to make a few discreet inquiries, but 'discreet' wasn't exactly the best skill of THB. And Angus McDonald was a very good detective.

Taako was woken by an urgent eyed Davenport, and he immediately knew that something was wrong. He wasn't sure why exactly the worried look on the dude's face prompted an instinctive alarm, but he had learned to trust his instincts.

"What's happening?" he asked, even though he knew he wasn't going to get much of an answer out of the guy.

"Davenport!" was all the guy offered, his hands moving quickly, but Taako didn't understand enough sign language to actually get it.

He did notice the signs for "Director" and "Angus" though, and he was moving instantly.

"Lucretia in her office?" Taako questioned, only pausing long enough for Davenport to nod before he was pulling on his boots and grabbing the Umbra Staff.

As Taako left, he half-noticed Davenport going to Magnus' and Merle's rooms to wake them as well, but he didn't pay it any mind, moving out of the suite and towards the elevators with a single-minded determination.

By the time he got to the elevators, the other three had caught up with him, and Taako tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for Merle and Magnus to get in the damn elevator so they could get a move on.

He said nothing the whole trip to the Director's office, just _knowing_ that something was wrong.

"Taako, there you are," the Director said, voice tight with worry when they got to her office. "When was the last time you spoke with Angus?"

"Yesterday? No, wait, day before," Taako said, stomach sinking with dread. "Why?"

"He left the base very early this morning, telling Avi that he had a family emergency to attend to. Avi had no reason not to believe him or to deny the request, so he sent Angus down planetside. But Angus left me this note-" the Director's voice cut off for a second, and Taako felt his dread increase. "He's in danger, isn't he?"

As the Director handed the note over for them to look at, Taako felt a strange, sickening sense of deja vu. Some part of his mind was screaming that everything was about to go wrong, but he didn't even know why.

The note was longer than Taako had expected, though he supposed it shouldn't be a surprise that the little nerd had babbled on.

Taako read the note as quickly as possible, cursing when he read Sazed's name.

"You two idiots can't keep your fucking mouths shut, huh?" Taako said, glaring between Merle and Magnus, refusing to admit to himself that if Angus had really been listening in for a while, he could have easily heard about it from Taako instead.

"Taako, please, not now," Lucretia said, glancing up from where she had her face buried in hands. She looked tired, and Taako thought about how much she seemed to like the kid and felt a stab of sympathy.

And she was right anyway. Snapping at his friends wasn't going to get them anywhere.

"Fine, whatever. We gotta find Ango," he said, hoping that Magnus and Merle would understand it as the apology it was meant to be. They seemed to.

"Do any of you know who this person is that he's looking for?" the Director asked. "I spoke with him a little while back and he said he was having a personal issue, but he didn't give much detail, and I didn't want to pry. Did he ever say anything to you three? I know he spends a lot of time with you."

Magnus and Merle glanced to Taako, clearly unsure how much he was comfortable revealing.

"Yeah. I know who he's looking for," Taako said. "Where'd Avi send him?"

"Wait- don't you have some way to track him through the bracers? They know where we are right?"

"They don't transmit constantly," the Director said, leaning her head forward in exasperation with herself. "I didn't want to be creepy, spying on my employees, you know?"

"Fuck," Taako said emphatically.

"It was a nice thought, though!" Magnus said, patting the Director on the back comfortingly.

"That could get invasive and weird, yeah, I suppose," Merle mused.

"Yeah, thanks for not being Fantasy Big Sister or whatever, but can we focus?" Taako said. "Where. Did. Avi. Send him?"

"Davenport!" Davenport exclaimed, spreading a map out on the Director's desk and gesturing to it, quickly marking where Avi must have put Angus down.

"Great. We're going," Taako said.

"I've had a team looking for Angus since I discovered that he was missing. They haven't turned up anything yet," Lucretia said. "I'm asking about this individual because I'm hoping that it may offer some insight to where he might be, or where Angus might seek him out."

"Team sweet flips?" Magnus questioned, a bit of excitement entering his voice.

"No, I'm afraid not. As impressive as they may be together, they're not our most- subtle team. I've sent a team of Seekers instead," the Director explained.

Taako stared down at the map, wracking his brain to figure out if he could remember anything useful. He hadn't paid much attention to Sazed, if he was being honest. He didn't know the guy enough to have a clue of where he might be.

But something familiar was whispering at the back of Taako's mind, and he focused, trying to pull it forward.

"There," Taako pointed to a small town a fair but walkable distance from where Avi had sent Angus. "That's Sazed's hometown. That's gotta be where Angus is looking."

The Director didn't question it, instead tapping at her Stone of Farspeech quickly.

"Maya? Have you and your team found anything of note in the town of- Wellspring? I have reason to believe Angus may have sought this individual there," she said.

A voice Taako was unfamiliar with came crackling back. "Yes, we have! I cannot confirm anything, but I'll send you the location information now."

Taako felt a tiny flash of relief, but didn't let it show. This wasn't over yet.

"Great, thank you," the Director said, and Taako saw the same wary hope on her face that he felt in himself.

"Normally, I would send Regulators for a task like this, but I know how much you three care for Angus, and so I ask if you-"

"Yes!" All three Reclaimers spoke before she could even finish speaking.

"Then I wish you good luck," the Director said, smiling softly at them. "Avi is waiting. I'll have Seeker Maya meet with you to explain the situation."

Taako was already leaving, barely taking the time to wave in acknowledgement as he stalked out of the office and toward the transport bay.

As they walked, no one said anything, too furious and worried to feel comfortable goofing too much. This was _Angus_ who was in danger, after all.

The whole way there and into the glass cannon ball, Taako found one thought spiraling around in his head, over and over, somewhat nonsensical all things considered, but unshakeable regardless.

_Hold on Angus. I can't lose you too._


	5. 'hostage situation'

Taako's heart was beating hard, anticipation keeping him ready to move, to act in whatever way he needed to in order to get Angus back.

Seeker Maya had briefed them on the situation and wished them luck, before leaving them outside of the the building where they believed Sazed to be.

Taako wanted to burst in immediately and make sure that he wasn't hurting Angus, but Maya had feared that rushing into the situation would make things worse. She would check it out ahead of them, comfortable with the task as a rogue as she was.

His Stone of Farspeech buzzed once- twice- and Taako tensed as he waited for a third that, thankfully, didn't come.

Maya had told them that she would contact them like this- one buzz if Angus was not present at all, two if he was present and in danger, and three if he was hurt- or worse.

After a pause, there was another, longer buzz, and Taako knew that they were good to go.

"Come on," he said to the others.

Magnus immediately opened the doors and made his way in, having been struggling with the 'staying back' even more than Taako had, and clearly relieved to be done with it.

When they got inside, however, the doors closed behind them with an audible 'click.'

"What're the odds that it's just one of those auto-lock doors?" Merle asked.

"Probably not great, I'd guess," Magnus said, poised on his toes to move as soon as he saw something to attack.

They moved deeper into the building, and they eventually found Sazed holding a knife to Angus' neck. They were standing over Maya's body, collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut underneath them.

"Hello, Taako," Sazed said, voice the same perfectly bland tone it always had been.

Taako growled, low in his throat at the sight of him with Angus, but didn't move closer, understanding the threat well enough to be unwilling to risk it.

"Get the fuck away from him!" Taako shouted back.

"Not yet, no," Sazed said, nervousness clear, but he still seemed far too confident in his position for Taako's comfort. "I'll let him go when I'm certain that you will let me go."

"Fat fucking chance of that," Taako snorted.

"So you're saying you don't care if I kill the brat, then?" Sazed said, raising an eyebrow at Taako as if he was being ridiculous when _Sazed_ was the one using a _child_ as a hostage.

Sazed began walking slowly toward the back door as he spoke, clearly well aware of the fact that they weren't going to do jack shit to stop him when he had Angus in such a vulnerable position.

The three of them inched after them, carefully, unwilling to take action and unwilling to let Sazed and Angus out of their sight.

Angus was watching them with wide eyes, and Taako absolutely hated this. He felt so helpless that his hands were shaking with it, but he could see no easy way out of this.

"What do you think is gonna happen here, dude?" Magnus demanded. "You're just gonna get away scot-free?"

"Yeah. Not the first time I've managed that, after all," Sazed said, and then he sneered at Taako. "If someone like him can escape capture all this time, it's gonna be a breeze for someone like me."

Angus' fingers were twitching and he had an expression of concentration on his face, and then, suddenly, there was a small flash of light in front of Sazed, and a little piece of metal clinked to the ground from Angus' free hand.

Taako wasn't sure what was happening until Sazed's hold loosened a fraction as he glanced down in confusion, but before he could correct his grip, Angus was slamming his foot down on Sazed's and slamming an elbow into the guy's stomach.

Sazed choked and Angus wriggled out of his hold, and Taako immediately shot off magic missile. At the same moment, Magnus rushed forward with Railsplitter raised above his head, only to be stopped by Angus shouting "wait!"

Magnus wasn't an easy guy to stop in his tracks, even for himself, and he clearly couldn't stop his momentum entirely, instead turning and slowing his hit enough to crack Sazed in the side of the head instead of getting him with the sharp of the sword. Sazed still went down, unmoving.

"Ango, what's up?" Magnus asked, frowning down at the kid. "I was gonna take this asshole to Pound Town."

"You can't kill him!" Angus insisted.

"Agnes, he- this is the guy that killed your parents. I thought you- came after him for that," Taako said, crouching in front of Angus and very definitely _not_ scanning his eyes over the kid frantically, seeking any sign of injury.

"Yes, but not to kill him! To hand him over to the authorities!" Angus insisted.

"Baby, that's real sweet and idealistic of you, but I'd like to just kill the fucker and get the hell out of here now, mmkay?" Taako asked.

Angus shook his head emphatically. "No, you don't get it! It's not about following the laws- it's- he's the only person that can prove you innocent, sir!"

As Angus looked up at him with big, worried eyes, Taako felt his heart flip in his chest strangely. He did not fucking deserve this kid's love. But he was selfish enough that nothing was gonna get him to let it go either. By this point, he was pretty sure that trying would only hurt Angus' feelings anyway.

"Right! Good thinking Djangus!" Magnus said, digging into his bag and pulling out some rope. He promptly started to tie up Sazed, and Angus watched carefully, before apparently deciding that Magnus was doing an acceptable job.

Angus' mouth made a little 'oh' of realization, and he darted back to where Seeker Maya was still collapsed, reaching a hand to her neck to check for a pulse.

"She's alive! Mister Merle?" he called back.

"Huh?" Merle said, frowning.

"Heal her, dipshit," Taako said, pushing Merle in that direction and watching Magnus finish tying up Sazed. Now that Angus had stopped watching, Magnus was tying him tighter- a little too tight to be comfortable, clearly, and Taako smirked in satisfaction at the sight.

After a moment of that, Taako glanced back over to Angus, fighting the urge to grab him and hug him. He could see that the kid was fine. He didn't need to be a sap.

He did still feel a sudden flash of jealousy when Magnus finished tying Sazed and immediately ran to scoop Angus up into a hug. Angus giggled happily at the action, but Taako still lightly punched Magnus in the shoulder, saying, "Great idea. Swing the former hostage around without even checking if he's got any injuries first. Can't possibly go wrong with that."

"He seemed pretty okay when he kicked the shit out of his captor, so I figured he's fine," Magnus said, though he still set Angus back down on the ground carefully.

Angus used the freedom of movement to dart over to Taako and wrap his arms around him in a hug too. Taako returned it instinctively.

"Um, we should probably tell Madame Director what's happening," Angus said, after a moment, pulling back slightly.

"She can wait," Taako said, tugging Angus forward again. Angus giggled again, and Taako would never admit how much he loved the sound because it would completely ruin his too-cool attitude if he even tried to explain it.

"Okay, but I want to go home, and she's the person that can send us the mode of transport we need for that," Angus said.

"Good point," Taako agreed, pushing the button on his bracer without letting Angus go, not all that surprised when his Stone of Farspeech started to ring almost immediately after.

He did pull away at that, accepting the call.

"Taako? Did you find Angus?" the Director's voice came through, urgent and afraid.

"Yeah, brat's right here," Taako said, casual.

"Hello, Madame Director!" Angus chirped eagerly, and Lucretia sighed in relief at her end of the line.

"Yeah, so, get one of those bubbles on it's way. We're heading the fuck home," Taako said, and he didn't even register the fact that he'd started to see this place and these people as home until he was on his way back up, Magnus and Merle in two of the other seats, and Angus sitting next to him, fighting the urge to fall asleep in order to keep mumbling about how much he loved the three of them.

He was heading home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fin!
> 
> Thanks for all the lovely comments on this fic! I'm so happy that you enjoyed it, and I hope you liked this last chapter too!


End file.
